Unexpected
by PhoenixDove1
Summary: This is my attempt at a Vega/femshep romance, and my very first fanfic, hope you like it! This will have an alternate ending. The story will also not be completely linear to the game (eventually :) ). Any time I re-post a chapter with a major edit I will post the date I did it. Critiques, edits and/or loving comments are welcome!
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

It was quiet. And dark. The tinkling of the manacles on Shepard's left wrist the only sound as she wrung her hands in agitation sitting on the edge of the stiff cot that was on the opposite wall of the door she was facing. She was in a maximum security prison, the only person on her side of it. She was scared, she could admit that to herself. She wasn't the hard ass everyone thought she was. She cried herself to sleep at night, on occasion; she had laughing fits, though those were far and few between these last few years. And, she loved, passionately. It's what made her tick, everyone on her crew, family. She loved them and trusted them, no question.

Turning herself in was the hardest and easiest thing she could do. She was the reason 300,000 Batarians were dead, no matter that it was to provide time for every galactic species to prepare more for the Reaper invasion. Manacles clanking, she put her head in her hands, 300,000, and all for nothing. No one was preparing for anything, she thought bitterly. She was in fact waiting to be transferred to another holding facility to await a trial that could take months. She got up to pace, no longer able to sit still. Why was she still manacled, she thought, what the hell could she do from in this cell? She wasn't even a biotic. It was almost comical in a way, her reputation definitely preceded her.

She sat back down, and leaned back against the cold hard wall, why wasn't Anderson here yet? A chill ran through her. He'd told her he'd come get her out of solitary as soon as possible. It'd only been a day or so, but being alone with her thoughts for so long, still shackled, and in a very dark room was driving her insane. Well, there was some light, just a very long distance down the hall so practically none reached inside her cell. She looked at her wrist, she couldn't see it but she knew it would be red from the manacle rubbing it, she'd eventually have a bruise.

In the distance she heard a heavy door creak and then slam, and again, several more times, until a blinding light from the hallway came through the bars on her door. Relief flooded through her, they were finally going to move her. She put her right forearm up to shield her eyes so she could see who was there.

"Shepard." She heard in that familiar baritone voice.

"Anderson?" She asked not allowing her relief to reflect in her voice.

"We finally got past all the bullshit red tape." Her eyes adjusted and she could finally see him, he was wearing his military dress uniform. He turned to the serious looking mountain of a man standing next to him and angrily commanded, "Take that off her."

The man filled out his uniform with solid muscle, a few scars and an intriguing tattoo peeping out on his neck through his collar. He leaned down and reached out for her hand and she recoiled back, she was wary of everyone at this point. He froze, just looking into her eyes, waiting.

"It's ok Shepard," Anderson said, "This is Lt. James Vega, he's with me. I'll explain on the way, but let him take that ridiculous shackle off so we can leave this prison."

Implicitly trusting Anderson she nodded but realized he couldn't see her so said "ok" and held her hand up so the Lt. could unshackle her. He was surprisingly gentle, his left hand held her wrist and the manacle so it wouldn't move in a feather light grip that had her pulse jumping. He smoothly turned the key to unlock it and waited for her to take her wrist out, which she did so and rubbed it gently. He dropped the manacle unceremoniously to the floor and held out his hand yet again, this time she took it and he helped her to her feet.

There wasn't much room and she was just inches away from him. For half a second they looked at each other, sizing each other up, hoping her inappropriate thoughts didn't show in her eyes. After a moment he gestured for her to precede him out the door. All business for now then, she supposed, whatever kind of soldier he was he must be a damn good one.

When they finally got outside and to transport, she turned to Anderson and said "Thank you, I didn't know hell actually existed."

Anderson let out a grunt of dissatisfaction. "Don't thank me, you had to spend more than an hour in there."

They all got into the shuttle and she waited for him to maneuver the transport into the air before speaking again. "Well, it could have been worse, it could have been a week." She gave a paltry half smile, she had a problem with always trying to make people feel better. She could always see the other side of an argument and could always manage to see the good in someone, no matter what they did there was always a reason. Even now, just being out of there lifted her spirits and she felt more herself.

Anderson gave her an incredulous look, smiled, shook his head. "I'm glad that place didn't change you, we have better accommodations for you in Vancouver on Earth."

She felt her stomach drop. She knew she was going to another holding location but for a brief second was able to forget, Anderson's presence was always comforting. In some ways she felt closer to him than her own father. To lighten the mood she said "As long as I don't have to wear my iron bracelet, it doesn't really go with my outfit." Anderson laughed. "So, what's with the LT. in the back seat?" She asked truly curious as to why he was with Anderson.

"Lt. Vega will be your bodyguard and your prison guard while you're on Earth. He's the best Marine I have, besides you. Since you have no biotic ability and you can't get your hands on a weapon, he will be your weapon and your shield if necessary."

That made her nervous. "The death threats are that bad?"

"No." Anderson laid a reassuring hand platonically on her knee, "Just a precaution." He gave her a stern look as they docked with the transport ship that would take them through the relay to her new home.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Four months later, she felt like a rat in a cage. Albeit a golden one. She had a pretty view of the grounds, she had to admit the greenery was very soothing. She hadn't been back to Earth in years; it was just as beautiful as she remembered. But she was still stuck, the council still wasn't doing anything, nor the tribunal that would be hearing her case, which still hadn't happened. She wanted to scream, instead she walked to the window and looked out.

She thought about her muscle bound body guard, he was always a nice distraction. He'd taken to coming in and checking on her almost every evening. He had a shift for guard duty but was always a full time body guard so he was never far. It was surprisingly nice that she could rely on him; having one constant when everything else was shit.

Her friends had not been able to visit, Liara managed to have the Lt smuggle an electronic file into to her. It was frustratingly undetailed, but being the new Shadow Broker it had to be. Liara could never appear to have too much information. So the letter was very general about the state of some of her crew, but anything was better than nothing. She opened up the datapad to read it again.

S,

I am sorry I have not been able to visit. I cannot explain why right now but I have a feeling you know. Do not worry Shepard, you will be out soon. Hopefully before the reapers are at their front door. I cannot give you enough details about your crew over such an unsecure channel but know the ones I'm in contact with are all alright. I have also checked out your prison detail, they are commendable soldiers each with exemplary records. Your bodyguard in particular, who was kind enough to give this to you, is the highest ranking one of the bunch but ran into some trouble not too long ago. I do not believe it is anything to worry about though. As soon as you get out I will find you.

All the best,

L

She was glad Liara persuaded James to get the note to her, or more that James allowed Liara to persuade him. From what she'd been gathering about him her first assessment of him was right. He was a good solider and if he didn't want something to happen, it didn't and vice versa. He was formidable. And it sent a shiver up her spine. The way he wore his shirts should be outlawed.

Breaking her out of her thoughts was the standard three knocks on the door but instead of the minute wait to allow her to cover up or get presentable, it was immediately opened. She hid the datapad behind her back angry that someone would shirk protocol, she could have been getting dressed. When she saw it was James she waited until he had closed and locked the door behind him before relaxing and putting the datapad back on her desk, not hiding her smile.

"Are you trying to catch me in a state of undress Mr. Vega?" Their back and forth had grown on her and she looked forward to their little banter.

He smiled back at her. "Actually no, but now that you mention it..." He raked his gaze over her body, shook his head once. "I think anyone would be crazy if they didn't want to gatito." He winked at her, then gestured for her to sit at the small table on the opposite wall of the small apartment. As she sat down she realized that she had been waiting for him. She waved it off though, of course she was he was her only visitor and helped break up the boredom. Something she appreciated to no end. He was the sole reason she was not crazy or having stress induced panic attacks. The reapers were always on her mind, all the shit that she and her crew went through, all the people she'd lost, always on her mind. The fact that she died but was brought back, always worrying that she was not whole, less a woman and more a machine.

She knew she was still human but, when James was around it bothered her more than she cared to admit, there were a lot of cybernetics running through her. She only ever thought about it when he left and she was again alone with her thoughts.

"What's that shit eating grin for Vega?" She asked suspiciously. Not even bothering to try and ask him what gatito meant. She'd tried every time he visited for a month after he started calling her that, but he always refused to tell her so she took another stance. She made him promise, under punishment of death, he would not call her that in front of another soul. He smiled at her and promised, then crossed his heart, making her laugh.

He produced a small deck of cards in his hand. "I figured tonight would be a great night to see how good you really are at poker."

She had played before, but she never thought of herself as proficient, something James had been rubbing in as soon as she told him.

As James watched her sit down then join her, he thought to himself that he enjoyed himself way too much in Shepard's company. If he wasn't careful he'd be visiting her every night until his assignment was done. He remembered when he was first assigned to guard her. He thought why would the most dangerous person in the galaxy need a bodyguard? Then he got to know her, she was a powerhouse and smart, but she was wasn't at all dangerous, except to her enemies, and keeping his mind focused on other things besides her pert breasts. But she was vulnerable now and it was his job to make sure no on exploited that.

Looking at her expectant grin now reminded him, she was a person just like everyone else, breakable. And he'd be damned if anyone broke her on his watch.

He hadn't realized it but several hours passed and they were still playing. He had thoroughly lost track of time because he was having fun playing poker with her. He could read her ticks pretty well, but she caught on quick and she'd started bluffing him successfully. As he shuffled the cards for their last hand he decided to try and press his luck before he left for the night. "How about we raise the stakes?" He asked as he dealt the last hand.

"Are you allowed to change rules before the game has ended?" She asked as he dealt the hand.

"Only if I can get you to agree, and I can be very persuasive." He said suggestively.

She smirked at him. "Alright, what are you proposing?" She asked as she looked at her cards.

"If I win you kiss me, and, if you win I kiss you." She shocked him by laughing out loud. He'd been expecting her to say no not laugh, he liked the way it sounded.

"So," she said, "either way we kiss?" And gave him the most bullshit innocent grin he'd ever seen, it felt like a challenege.

"I'm fairly good, it'd be worth your while." He said wiggling his eyebrows.

Outside she was laughing at his boldness inside she was squirming. She wanted nothing more than to be kissed senseless by him, but she just couldn't take that next step. "James... I can't." She said, sad that she had to break the mood. It seemed though that he was prepared for this response, which helped keep the mood light and she was eternally grateful.

"How about this then, if I win you kiss me," He held a hand up as she was about to say something, "and if you win we get to do anything you want."

That got her attention. "Anything I want?" She verified.

"Anything that's in my power to give." The way he said that and the way he was looking at her made her heart involuntarily skip a beat.

She cleared her throat she definitely couldn't ask for the first thing that popped into her head but there was a close second, so she jumped in. "Alright." At the end of the hand before they both laid down their cards they started talking shit to each other. She made sure he didn't want to fold and give in, and he did the exact same thing trying to entice her with his charm.

He smugly laid down three fives, to which she laid down three ten's. She felt a little elated and just a tiny twinge of disappointment. She still grinned at him, she won and she knew exactly what she wanted to do.

"So, aren't you going to ask?" Her right ankle was underneath her left thigh and she was leaning on her elbow, hand under her chin just grinning at him. It made her eyes sparkle he thought. Light green with flecks of gold.

He responded jokingly. "Don't get too excited about winning, you'll hurt my manly sensibilities." That made her laugh again and her face lit up, she was beautiful he thought. He decided his goal would be to draw this out as long as he could, to torment her and pretend to be hurt. So he stacked all the cards by suit then in numerical order before finally placing them back in the pack. His Madre always told him that everyone, no matter who they were or who they thought they were, put their pants on the same as everyone else, one leg at a time. So teasing her was natural; he did it to pretty much everyone, it always helped break the ice. And he definitely enjoyed teasing her.

When he looked back up at her she rolled her eyes in exasperation and he finally asked. "What would the great Commander Shepard ask of me?"

"James, I told you to stop calling me that." She admonished. He really liked hearing his name from her lips. He was about to protest her rule, as he always did, but she pressed on. "I want to go to the firing range, I'm dying in here, I'm going to get soft." She said. "Well, exercising aside... can you do that?" She looked so earnest he was struck with a thought; how the hell did she do her job before? She was just so honest and wore it on her sleeves. How weren't people constantly taking advantage of that? Or, maybe it was because she was so honest? Maybe they didn't even see her coming. Moving back to the topic at hand he could respect that request.

He knew she was a soldier just like him, he'd probably go crazy too if he had to stay locked up. Somehow it hadn't happened yet, something that irked him. With what happened on his last mission he should have been thrown in the brig and never let out.

He stood up to leave and she followed. At the door he turned around abruptly almost causing her to bump into him, which had been the goal, he loved throwing her off. He looked into her eyes, tucked a stray hair behind her ear and said, "It won't happen tomorrow but I will get you range time. Goodnight gatito." He said quietly, and left.

After he closed the door, she waited to hear the lock slide home and slowly let out the breath she'd been holding. When he looked at her and then so gently tucked her hair behind her ear; the contact caused her stomach to flip a few times. Just like the only other time he touched her to take the manacles off, he was surprisingly gentle. He was controlled and knew his strength, it was sexy. She sighed heavily, she was in trouble, the sooner she got back to the Normandy and out of here the better.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

James was walking through the halls of one of the Alliances main bases in Vancouvers version of the Citadel's Presidium three weeks later. He was reflecting on how irritating it had been to get the Commander range time. He knew it wasn't going to be easy, she was relieved of duty and technically imprisoned. Everyone loved reminding him of those facts, like he'd forgotten somehow, and worse they never said no, just that they'd send the request up. Whatever that meant. He understood their hesitation but this was Commander Shepard not some regular piss ant recruit.

Yesterday, he'd had enough of the bullshit and decided to call Anderson to see if he could help at all. Maybe use rank with the range supervisor or something. Anderson advised James that under the unique circumstances that it would be better from Admiral Hackett. That same day, approximately an hour after he'd called Admiral Hackett's office, his secretary called back to let him know Shepard could have an hour on the firing range after it closed at 1730 the very next day; today and he was on his way to tell her now.

It was right around five o'clock when he reached her door, he knocked and immediately went in. As he walked in, he found her standing at the foot of the bed, dressed in marine issue sweat pants and a tank top. Ever since she'd asked him if he was trying to catch her half-dressed, it had become a game for them, for him to try and for her to thwart him. Not that he expected her to be changing since this was around the time he normally visited, he was just honest with himself. He did want to catch her that way, naked preferably. Not that he expected it to ever happen, but he could always hope.

"Commander." He said as the door locked behind him. No matter how many times she told him not to call her that, she was still a Commander to him and pretty much everyone else too. She was the one in denial about it not everyone else. This incarceration was only temporary. He kept doing it because it was his own way of trying to remind her of that.

Instead of responding though she just looked at him expectantly, either not hearing the moniker or ignoring it. He smiled at her as her scent enveloped him, teasing him as it always did; a light scent of flowers and soap. He decided he could make her wait just a bit more, then hit her with the great news and make it that much sweeter.

He started to walk around the small room as casually as he could, looking at everything he could find as if it was a normal day. It was a small battle of wills he knew she'd lose because her curiosity would get the better of her, and it was fun to play with her about it. They'd gotten close enough he knew he wasn't overstepping her boundaries. Sure enough, he had just opened the cabinet over the tiny kitchenette when she cracked.

"Vega you are..." She huffed. She couldn't finish the thought she had to think of the right word to call him. He had to know something and he was deliberately torturing her, she had an idea of when he decided to do it too. It wasn't fair, it's not as if it was her fault he could never catch her undressed. Well, it kind of was, but it was his fault that he always came so late, who changed at five in the evening?

What bothered her more was that she wanted him to catch her, more than that it had become a game she was ok with even pretending to play. As she tried not to think about that disturbing thought and thinking of the right word to use, she made the mistake of looking in his direction. He was looking back at her, not at all surprised about her outburst. She must be losing her mind because she thought of him as sexy right now, the scar on his cheek bringing attention to his beautiful brown eyes. When he slowly, deliberately walked towards her she wasn't prepared. Her stomach did a little flip and the small apartment suddenly felt a even smaller.

For a half a second he thought he saw something akin to nervousness in her eyes as he walked toward her but it was gone so quickly he wasn't sure. He had to be wrong though, what would she have to be nervous about? Her face was flushed a little too, hands on her hips. "I'm what?" He asked softly as he stopped a foot away putting his hands in his pockets, knowing it made him seem bigger.

Damn him, she thought. Think! She practically yelled at herself, in an effort to force her brain to find the right word. "Exasperating." She exclaimed a moment later in triumph. She almost added a 'ha' as if to say you can try to distract me but it won't work. She was glad she had more control over herself. When he continued to look at her she said in a more commanding voice. "Just tell me already! I know you've heard something." She felt her nervousness come through so she crossed her arms. The problem was the Alliance hadn't officially come out and said no about using the range so there was always a chance they would finally say no.

If it had been anyone but Vega they wouldn't have noticed when Shepards demeanor changed. There were no creases on her forehead to give her away like other people. For Shepard, it was her posture that gave her away, her shoulders tightened ever so slightly even though just now she tried to hide it by crossing her arms. So without any more delay he said. "You've got your range time. Today, in half an hour." The smile she gave him was with such pure elation he realized in this moment she was completely unguarded.

He definitely took too much pleasure in putting that smile on her face. He was in the middle of reminding himself there was a clear line between them that he shouldn't cross when suddenly she threw her arms around him. And his arms too quickly embraced her. Her body was strong and soft, and seemed to fit into him perfectly. Before he could do something stupid like use his hands to memorize her curves he felt her stiffen and slowly push herself away from him, he reluctantly let her go.

"Um, sorry, ah thank you." She said awkwardly. "I've been going kind of stir crazy, as you know, and you're like a brother to me and it was just so great to know that I'll be out of this room for even an hour." She rubbed her hands on her thigh to try to stop her rambling and steady her thudding heart. She needed him to believe her and just brush it off as excitement for being able to leave the room. Realizing he was still standing there, looking at her expectantly she forced her mind past the awkwardness by enveloping her happiness at being able to leave her cage and said excitedly. "You have to leave, I have to change!" Her smile firmly planted on her face.

Vega nodded at her and left to wait outside. As he leaned on the wall right outside the door a smile tugged at his lips, he'd never heard her ramble before. He let the smile drop almost at once and closed his eyes and let his head drop. He could still feel her breasts pressing against his chest. He crossed his arms over his chest to push the thought away. He couldn't go any deeper than being her friend; like a brother. Once they released her he'd only be a footnote; the way it should be, that was no reason to lose his cool.

As the door shut she took long breathes to calm her heartbeat. What had possessed her? Maybe staying in solitary would have been better. At least then she wouldn't have the opportunity to make a fool of herself. When was the last time she hugged anyone anyway, ten years? And why did he seem so calm and casual, the complete opposite of her reaction?

And the horror, she had started rambling! She hated that when she got nervous she rambled. She smacked her palm to her forehead and ran it down her face as she plopped onto the bed. This was why she loved the military and did so great with it, there was no gray area. It was also why she was consistently single, she liked rank and structure and order and there was no guessing and no moments of discomfort. His nearness was affecting her and she couldn't hide it. She stood up, she couldn't fixate on it now. She went to the closet to change into her gear. And with nothing else to do her mind went right back to what she was trying to forget.

James Vega. She knew her reactions had to be more intense because it had been a long time she'd touched anyone, let alone hug a man like Vega she rationalized as she tugged off her tank top and sweats. Standing still for a moment, she shook her head. She couldn't allow herself this moment of weakness, that way, by the time she left for the range she would be her normal self again. She got back to dressing. She finished pulling on her fatigues and sat down to tie her boots. A wave of anxiety hit her as she remembered how traitorously her body had reacted to his. It had felt good, he'd been warm and inviting and she's started to melt into him before she'd caught herself.

Maybe Garrus had been right, she thought letting go of the laces to cover her face with her hands. Maybe she should have gotten laid like everyone else on her ship had before they'd hit the Omega 4 Relay or the time before that right before they'd gone to Ilos. So she could know if she were overreacting or if it was something else. No, she thought, she could at least admit that to herself, she was attracted to the man. Hopefully her body hadn't betrayed too much, that way she could pretend it never happened. At least in public.

She finished tying up the laces on both boots, took one last breath to steady her nerves, reminded herself she was being ridiculous and firmly resolved to focus on the fact that she was less than thirty minutes away from holding her Widow 52 again or any sniper rifle at this point. Walking to the door it slid open, she gestured for him to lead the way and tried not to grind her teeth as his mellow cologne mixed with the smell of clean linens surrounded her.

He was able to pretend nothing happened since she walked out the calm and collected Commander he knew she was. Which was good, he had to focus on his job as they walked to the range. He kept his head on a swivel, on alert for anything unusual. A few looks were thrown their way, but none of them showed any disdain or violence, more like awe and shock that they were seeing the real Commander Shepard. He chuckled to himself wondering if she realized how much influence she actually had over people by just her reputation alone. He respected her decision to blow the relay and couldn't imagine the struggle she must have gone through or what she must be still going through. He didn't suspect anything would happen to them, they were in Alliance headquarters, but he couldn't relax.

She'd finally started opening up to him. Around a month into his assignment Shepard had started to share some of what had happened; something he suspected she didn't do often and he was humbled by her trust. She'd told him before the relay exploded that she'd tried to have the Batarian's evacuated but there just hadn't been any time. Her voice was hollow and her eyes told him she was somewhere else. When her skin turned a slight shade of white he knew she was living it again. She'd come back from where the memory had taken her and it took a monumental effort from him to fight his instincts to hold her to try and comfort her. She was higher than his commanding officer but she was still a person and he felt like an ass whenever he thought about it.

As they walked they didn't speak, Shepard was glad, she didn't want James to get in trouble for befriending the enemy. She snorted to herself, she was the enemy. Sometimes it amused her, sometimes it shamed her and sometimes it frustrated her. She just kept moving forward. It was silly how much going to the range excited her but it did and it helped keep all her other thoughts at bay. It'd been far too long since she'd held a weapon.

She gave a sidelong glance to her bodyguard, she'd have to find a way to thank him, a hug wasn't enough, nor was it appropriate. He'd kept his word, and it was a task that couldn't have been easy to get permission to do. That just inched him up a notch in her book. She looked around the corridor and stairwell they went through to the range, she was glad that there weren't many people. They arrived and the walk had been blessedly uneventful.

She was authorized to fire an assault rifle, a sniper and a pistol and she had an hour to do it. They were already set up for her so she immediately reached for the assault rifle, aimed at the target and emptied a thermal clip on it. She closed her eyes for a moment, it had been therapeutic and she wanted to take it in. After a moment she opened her eyes, and with a wicked grin got down to business. She did a roll to the half wall to her left ejecting the empty clip and reloading a fresh one at the same time. She then shot from cover in short bursts on another target.

He didn't know it was possible but watching her fire the weapons was hot. She handled the guns expertly as she did old marine shooting drills. He never wanted to be on the wrong side of a gun she was firing. Later when they left at the end of the hour she looked content. They didn't talk as they walked back, both constantly looking for an attack that didn't come. He could almost feel her energy, and she still smelled good. Better, he corrected himself, now she smelled of soap, flowers and carbon.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Sarah Shepard sighed loudly and got up from the little two person table in her apartment prison and walked across her small room to the window. The datapad she'd been reviewing still in her hand. It was a report of all she knew and could find about the Reapers. She was going over it for weaknesses. She didn't really need it, she'd written up the report herself but sometimes it helped to have something tangible. Other times visualizing was enough. Using both methods almost always worked when she was faced with a challenge. This time was not one of them.

Like all the other times before she just couldn't think of anything. They were just too big, too advanced. Even if they created a virus that would work with their physiology there would be no way to get it past the Reapers shields. They had to have a weakness, everything had at least one. She had to find it, and it was there in her datapad; in her memory, she just had to pull it out.

She ran her fingers through her hair and sighed again. Her Auburn wavy hair had grown to the middle of her shoulder blades. She'd have to see if she could take some time to get it cut seeing as how she was going to be here forever. Looking out the window but not really seeing anything she thought about her few months in prison. Since Anderson had transferred her to the apartment in Vancouver she hadn't heard from him though he left updates for James to give her. And of her crew only Liara managed to contact her with Lt. Vega's aid.

James. He'd been totally unexpected. Her prison guard, bodyguard, and only visitor, he'd gotten under skin. He always had an easy smile or a flirty wink. She felt more at ease in his company than she could ever remember feeling. Something she tried to attribute to her extended stay with no Command or contact with the outside world.

She still felt a little embarrassed when the memory of her more or less throwing herself at Vega pushed to the surface. He seemed to know that she couldn't talk about it and, like her, had pretended nothing happened. She was forever grateful but there was a small part of her that had wanted him to look at her, past her faults and cybernetics and kiss her until all she could do was feel. Struggling to push that thought back into her subconscious she tried to focus on the foliage outside. She registered a small boy content to play with his toy shuttle.

Three knocks at her door disrupted her concentration. She turned to wait for James to enter. There was no one else it could be albeit he was earlier than usual. It was only one in the afternoon.

As soon as he came in James snapped into a salute. "Commander."

Even after seeing him every day her stomach still did a little flutter, he was just so male. "James, you're not supposed to call me that anymore." She said more out of habit than to admonish him.

He dropped the salute smiling, he said. "I'm not supposed to salute you either."

"Why so formal today?" A feeling of unease traveled through her. He always just came in and locked the door behind him, and he hadn't saluted her since that first month he was guarding her.

His smile gone and he said, "The defense committee wants to see you."

She immediately dropped the datapad on the desk and got into step with him following him out, glad she'd dressed in her fatigues today. "Sounds important. Did they say why?"

"No." He shook his head. "Just to get you, _now_."

As they walked to the Defense chambers there was no chit chat and no smiling just a flurry of activity all around. There seemed to be three times as many people in the building than normal. The feeling that something was seriously wrong got stronger the closer they got to the Defense chambers. The crease between James's eyebrows showed he was as concerned as she was; she was glad he stayed close.

They were demanding her presence, not the Tribunal, so it had nothing to do with the trial. This was the same group of people who relieved her of duty in the first place. Some lame excuse to try and distance the Alliance from what she'd done. The closer they got to the Defense chambers the more certain she became that it could only be one thing. To be proved right about the Reapers coming though was not any sort of comfort.

James knew she would be coming to the same conclusion he was. The Reapers had finally started their assault. What else would have the Defense committee call him in the middle of drills to bring the Commander as soon as possible? Anderson met them in the hallway and Vega stood back to let them talk. He couldn't help that his eyes strayed to her ass.

She filled out her uniform in all the right ways. It was bizarre that he could notice something like that and that he was still content to look at it considering he'd just heard Anderson inform them that Admiral Hackett had mobilized the entire fleet. Shepard made Anderson confirm the Reapers had started their assault. She was justifiably pissed that now the Alliance wanted her help. But what pulled his attention was where they were headed; Earth.

His first thought was 'hell yeah', it would be the fight of his life. The thought of combat never scared him. His second thought again returned to the woman in front of him with the bitable ass. Would he ever see her again? There was no way the Alliance wouldn't reinstate her. Only an idiot wouldn't. Shepard would be their best hope, shit probably everybody's. But he had to assume his assignment with her would be over and they'd put him on the front line.

At the top of the stairs they ran into an old acquaintance of the Commanders, Major Ashley Williams. She looked like any other hardass military chick. Her brown hair was about as long as Shepards had gotten. He watched Shepard interact with her and congratulate the Major on achieving the rank. A tense moment passed between the two women. The Commander broke eye contact to look at him and he realized this was where they would part ways. He gave in to the impulse to touch her one last time. He held out his hand and said. "Commander, good luck in there."

She took his hand. "James…" They didn't immediately release each other. He should have said something but he couldn't think of the right thing to say with Anderson and the Major standing there.

"We have to go." Anderson said. Shepard let go of his hand, whatever she'd been planning on saying died on her lips. She smiled at him one more time then turned and left.

Not more than five minutes later it seemed the whole base was thrown into upheaval. The Reapers hadn't been on their way, they were already here on Earth. And they'd starting attacking the whole of Vancouver, not just the base. He and the Major had gotten to the Normandy and picked up the Commander just in time, leaving Anderson behind. He was currently in the shuttle bay now, pacing back and forth silently fuming.

He did not want to leave Earth. That's where he was needed, where the fight was, no matter the odds. As soon as Shepard came aboard she'd ordered Joker to the Citadel when he realized they were leaving. It didn't sit right with him. They'd all seen the destruction, the reapers. He'd always believed Shepard about their existence and their goals but they were a whole hell of a lot bigger than he could have ever imagined. People needed them, how could they just leave? How could she? The order coming from Anderson didn't change the way he felt, it was like they were running.

He couldn't keep her harsh words from replaying in his head._ "We have to have help in this fight, we'll never win this alone. Don't you think I'd rather stay? I don't like it either but the Admiral is right in this, we're going to the Citadel. You want out? You can catch a ride from there."_ Her blunt anger at him and the way she'd just dismissed him was sobering. It was a reminder that things had changed in more ways than just the Reapers invading. He realized now that by his disagreement with her he had questioned her orders, in turn questioning her authority. Anderson naturally reinstated her to full rank and gave her command of the Normandy again. Even if she wasn't his commanding officer she was his superior officer, there was no excuse for what he did, no matter how close they'd gotten.

His anger dissipated as he paced away his excess adrenaline. Thinking more clearly it humbled him that she'd seen through her anger at leaving to the wisdom in what Anderson had told them to do. Earth wasn't the only place the Reapers would hit. They would hit every other colonized world in the galaxy and the only way anyone had a chance for survival was if they all worked together. Their next step was Mars though not the Citadel. And when the elevators opened he stopped pacing and watched her walk out, the Major behind her. They looked at each other for a brief moment, but she kept on going to the ground shuttle.

The weave underlays on their uniforms had to touch skin in order to keep them cool or hot, depending on climate, as well as administer medi-gel when necessary. She and Ashley changed into their gear in the elevator to have a private space to change in. They were changing because after her argument with Vega, Admiral Hackett had come through an emergency comm channel. He reaffirmed Andersons order to go to the Citadel to start building alliances but first they had to make a stop at Mars to Help Liara with some Prothean artifact. The silence in the elevator was thick and she was glad when they left. She missed Ashley but now was not the time to mend fences.

When she came out her eyes sought him out. He was pacing like a caged animal but stopped when he saw her. She hated how quickly her world had tilted. And she really hated that she was going to have to go topside with unresolved history with Ashley and whatever it was that was going on with her and Vega.

He looked dangerous in his gear with his rifle in his hand. Because his gear hid the tattoo on his neck it made the scar running from nose to cheek under his eye more apparent, and if possible that made him more attractive to her. She had to be going crazy to see these things about him at a time like this. She pushed yet another thing on her list to deal with to 'later'. Continuing on to the Kodiak she tried to get herself ready for what was waiting for them on Mars.

Joker came over the comm to advise them they were four minutes from the drop zone. She and Ashley sat down in the back while Vega hopped in the pilots' seat. She wanted to know what they'd found on Mars that could potentially destroy the Reapers? And why was she just hearing about it now? Whatever, she'd find out and then she could come back to the Normandy. As Vega took the Kodiak out she smiled to herself, she'd be coming back to the Normandy, she was home.

On their way to Mars Ashley was going through several emotions. It was great to see Shepard again. The last time they'd met was not her finest moment. They'd become really good friends during their time on the SR-1. Shepard was the best Commander she'd ever had. And she'd helped Ashley realize that maybe having aliens on the crew wasn't such a bad deal after all. Shepard was another badass solider chick who liked guns and didn't mind getting dirty. She'd even started becoming friends with Liara.

She smiled at the memories. Then Shepard died. It was like losing a sister. It was horrible. Shortly after she lost touch with the rest of the Normandy crew.

Then two years later, she couldn't believe what she was seeing on Horizon. It was Shepard and she was alive, but not only working for Cerberus almost completely rebuilt by them. At the time she'd felt betrayed and a little freaked. Instead of saying how happy she was that Shepard was alive, she shut down any apologies or reasoning Shepard had offered and told her she didn't want to talk to her.

Almost a year on and Ashley very much regretted her reaction. She understood what Shepard had tried to tell her then. But still wasn't sure if she could trust Shepard. If Shepard wasn't being controlled by some type of electronic implanted in her, she'd spent almost a year as a tool for Cerberus. Through all her doubts she had to concede that it would be good to fight with Shepard again. As they landed she locked her helmet and followed the Lt and the Commander to the surface of Mars.

Several hours later Ashley knew she'd been right, it had been good to be back with Shepard. But also as a nice surprise Liara had been on Mars and immediately Shepard dismissed the LT back to the ship. He was attractive and he took orders well. It'd been nice to have Liara back. She'd changed, she was much more reserved, definitely less shy and she seemed to know everything. She couldn't help but think that they were part of the SR-1 again. That's when it all went to hell. Whatever this EVA bitch was she was going after Shepard and Ashley had to prevent that.

Back on the ship, after the disaster that was Mars, Shepard was dazed. She didn't know if Ashley as alive or dead. Shepard barely heard Liara when she'd said they needed to go to the Citadel immediately to get Ashley medical attention. She ordered Joker to take them to the Citadel. She ordered Liara and EDI to get whatever they could from EVA and she looked at Ashley once more. She couldn't believe Ashley still didn't believe her intentions were good and that she'd never sacrifice innocents to accomplish her goals. Cerberus was a means to an end and she'd fought the Illusive Man every step of the way. With nothing left to do Shepard headed up to her quarters to shower.

Forty minutes later they'd docked at the Citadel and after making sure Ashley was taken care of James went and restocked his supplies. His goal was to get done what he needed to get done as quickly as possible and then head to the embassies to wait for Shepard. He knew she'd gone to visit Ashley in Huerta Memorial first, to make sure she was settled. Something he approved of, politics could always wait. But he didn't want to miss her because he had no idea what she'd do after speaking with the council and Udina. So he'd wait so he didn't miss her, he had to talk to her. About an hour later he finally saw her walking out looking extremely restless.

He knew the council believed her now, after doubting her for years and wasting time for pretty much all of them. Not that it did much good now nor could it be consolation. He wondered how the council reacted to the potential weapon they'd found. He had to admit it seemed like they were reaching for straws but something was better than nothing. Her face was a mask and she almost missed him on the way to the elevator. She slowed down when she saw him and changed direction, now or never he thought.

She was surprised to see James in the embassies she'd been expecting him to catch the first ship back to Earth. His arms were crossed and he was looking out the window like a sexy, immovable wall. He turned his head and when he saw her his beautiful brown eyes flashed an unidentifiable emotion. She wished he hadn't looked at her, then she could have kept going. Particularly because his being there reminded her of him leaving and she didn't want to think about it or how it made her feel. She couldn't be rude so she slowly walked up to him.

"What are you doing here James, I thought you were catching the first shuttle back?" She said a little sharper than she had intended.

He turned fully to her at attention and saluted. "Commander." He didn't want to mess this up and falling back on military protocol was instinct drilled into him.

She had to bite her tongue to prevent herself from telling him not to call her that anymore. It wasn't true now and it felt too intimate with so many people around. It caused her a moment of sadness to realize their easy banter would change. No matter what happened she didn't want it to be this way between them so she said "At ease." He moved to parade rest which wasn't really someone relaxing.

"Commander, I've come to tell you that I would like to stay and help with your mission if that's still an option."

He was so formal it was unnerving. "Yes, as long as you're committed, regardless of where you'd rather be."

He could absolutely accept that. "Yes ma'am. I'm here. I'm ready." He wanted to say more but he had to show her he could respect her rank and not talk out of line.

She hesitated, she knew there was more, looking around she said. "Lt… James, permission to speak freely." Almost at a loss for having to say that. "What's on your mind?"

He looked down at his feet then back at her eyes. It was cute. "Shepard, I'm sorry for my insubordination on the Normandy. There's no excuse. Anderson was right. _You_ were right." He looked into her eyes hoping she'd believe him.

This is why she did not like yelling at her crew, especially when they were friends. It always created awkward moments later, but it was a necessary evil. "Look, James. I have to make sure everyone is in 100%. Either you follow my orders or you don't come, no exceptions. But I don't like people to blindly follow, I need a crew, not minions."

He exhaled, able to now really relax. If possible he respected her even more. He knew plenty of higher ranking Alliance soldiers who were threatened if they thought someone was questioning their authority.

She was happy that he would be staying. He was excellent in combat. From what she saw on Mars, with one major exception, he followed orders great, almost anticipating what she'd need. He had great people person skills, he was a natural at everything she'd seen him do, definitely an asset to the team.

Wow, was she really rambling to herself? Sad, ok she had to admit it, she was very happy he decided to stay, just her, for no other reason than she liked talking and being around him. She still had to talk to him about that shit he pulled with the shuttle on Mars; but that could wait for now. "Glad you've decided to stay on Lt. We'll need you."

He gave her an unreadable look and nodded. "Thank you." She teased him about that look. "What, not comfortable up here with all the brass?"

He gave her a half smile glad she was joking with him again. That had to be a good thing right? "Just not my style." Not wanting to belabor the moment he added "I'll be in Purgatory with the grunts if you need me for anything, Commander." He waited for her to nod and left. He had to remember that now she was his commanding officer. And that gave him a great image of her above him and rank had nothing to do with it.

As she watched him go, enjoying the view more than she should, she was also thankful he hadn't asked her anything about her meeting with the council. It was beyond frustrating and not a subject she wanted to discuss at the moment. She hadn't really expected to get help from them, but she was right damn it, she was tired of them impeding her at every turn. And of all people Udina was the one helping her! He was such a rat. She knew he wouldn't be helping unless there was something in it for him. Maybe that was cruel, but it irked her that he was able to weasel his way in as counselor when Anderson left. Something was not right with the world. She got in the elevator and hit the button for Huerta Memorial. At least she was still a Spectre. That would help a lot she thought as the doors slid closed.

She had time to kill, she'd given her crew a twelve hour shore leave on the Citadel to get supplies and unwind a bit before starting out again. She was to head to Palaven's moon to get Primarch Vidorian. While discussing things with Udina in his office the Turian councilor had approached her with an offer. Save their Primarch and get Turian support. It seemed she was going to have to get help the hard way; bypass politicians. She didn't mind, she'd rather hang out with Vorcha than deal with their wearisome asses any longer than necessary.

She walked out of the elevator as it opened thinking back to the mission they had just finished on Mars. It was good to be back; in command, on the Normandy, but somehow it felt different. Ashley didn't trust her but it was good to see her again, she'd eventually come around. And it was good to have Liara back too though they hadn't had a chance to talk much yet. Liara was currently off somewhere doing Shadow Broker stuff. Having Joker's sarcastic butt in the driver's seat gave her one less thing to worry about and one more person she could trust. And EDI was still in control of the Normandy.

Walking up to Ashley's hospital room, the fear and anger she felt at seeing that robot bitch slamming her head against the shuttle came rushing back. She'd lost Kaidan on Virmire, she wasn't going to lose Ashley too. Ashley had grown on her, being a soldier herself they had a lot in common and she and Liara had become the sisters she'd never had. Ashley and Liara had even become friends, something that when they first met seemed impossible.

The door to Ashley's room silently slid open and she went and sat on the chair by the window. Shepard wanted peace and quiet, no one would disturb her here. Shepard thought back to Virmire and the excruciating moment she told Kaidan she was going for Ashley. It's what he wanted, he always felt like he needed to prove something to everyone, even though she always knew he didn't. It didn't in any way lesson her heart break at leaving him to die. He was a damn great biotic and a good friend.

She looked at Ashley, though her bruises looked brutal she looked as if she was sleeping peacefully. Shepard wished she could sleep as peacefully. Sleep was steadily eluding her. She was getting back on a good schedule while in prison. She knew she'd have to kiss normal sleep goodbye as she attempted to take a nap before they arrived at the Citadel. Twenty minutes later she'd woken up in a cold sweat.

The boy she'd been unable to save when the Reapers devastated British Columbia, the same boy she'd seen just that same day playing with his shuttle was in her dream. It was odd, she remembered running through an unending forest, it felt like slow motion and she could hear voices. She couldn't make out what they said or whose voices she was hearing. Upon reaching the boy he burst into flame and disappeared. She didn't want to think about what it meant, it was disturbing. She spent the next hour or so keeping Ashley company and staring out the window.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Sarah was looking at the beautiful purple blue haze surrounding the Citadel on the bridge of the SSV Normandy . Joker was guiding the them out of the docking bay. She felt uneasy but couldn't put her finger on why.

"All systems normal Mr. Moreau." Came EDI's voice once they were clear.

"Roger that. Commander?"

Taking a silent breath she said. "Take us out Joker. Palaven's moon, Manae."

"Yes ma'am." Joker punched the coordinates into the controls to take them to the relay. He turned back and said. "In case I didn't say it before, I'm sorry I never tried to contact you while you incarcerated."

Surprised Sarah fell back into their old dynamic. "You're not getting soft on me are you Joker?"

Joker smiled over at her. "The Alliance isn't that lucky. Ma'am."

She laughed at that and being who she was, the need to comfort her friend overrode her own disappointment. "It's ok Joker. It's past now, no hard feelings."

"Thanks Shepard."

She smiled at him. She didn't blame Joker, or any of her team. They were most likely doing what they always do, helping people. They fell into a companionable silence as they both watched the relay come closer. Something felt different, changed somehow, maybe that was what was making her uneasy but it felt distant and she couldn't explain that. It felt right to be back on the Normandy and with her crew. The few that were missing could be found. The biggest change for Sarah was she had freedom again. Maybe that was it. It certainly felt good that people couldn't say she was crazy anymore.

She shifted on her feet letting the view calm her. The image of Vega flirting with her during that last hand of poker about a month ago flitted through her mind. She sometimes wished she'd let him win that hand. At the same time she was glad she hadn't, it would have made things very awkward for her now. It was already awkward. Probably because she'd started having inappropriate dreams about him.

The brilliant blue flash of the Mass Relay jetting them across the galaxy brought her back from where her mind had been going. Her attraction to Vega was only circumstance, nothing more. Ignoring her inner voice telling her otherwise she said goodbye to Joker and headed to the gym. They had two more days travel time to reach Manae and getting back into a routine was one of her priorities.

She was glad Miranda had suggested they turn one of the cargo bays into a gym for everyone. And so had everyone else. Fortunately there wasn't anyone in there so she just took her fatigues off. Whenever she was in uniform she always had a sports bra on and boy shorts so no one would see anything if they walked in any way. She grabbed shorts and sneakers from her locker; they were still there as if she hadn't been gone for several months.

She went towards the free weights catching her reflection in the huge mirror Miranda had somehow gotten for them. She kept in shape because she had to be strong, quick and it was a great way to relieve stress. A side effect was that she normally liked what she saw in the mirror. She saw with some dissatisfaction that she'd gained a bit of weight. Her eating habits weren't great so she always could stand to lose ten to fifteen pounds. Poking at her stomach, apparently that limit got pushed to about twenty pounds now. She sighed, at least her cybernetics weren't showing anymore.

Grabbing two twenty-five pound dumbbells she started her workout. When she was done she felt better, her earlier uneasiness being pushed to the back of her mind. When she reached her cabin she took a shower then dropping on her bed fell asleep instantly. Several hours later she woke up early, less than refreshed. She hadn't dreamed of the little boy but she had the sensation that she was falling uncontrollably. Used to not getting much sleep, she grabbed breakfast in the mess and spent the day getting to know the new members of her crew. She liked to get a sense of where they were at.

Starting with the support staff she continued methodically floor by floor. They seemed to be a good group and she was happy to see some familiar faces. Liara had commandeered Miranda's old room and filled one whole wall with monitors and the other side with electronics. She didn't have much time to look around because Liara came right up and hugged her.

"Shepard, I'm so glad you're finally here. I didn't think this would be appropriate on Mars." She didn't give Shepard any time to agree. Letting Shepard go she said agitated. "I'm sorry I wasn't able to get you out. The Alliance was determined to drag their feet, almost as if they just wanted you to rot in Vancouver."

"Don't worry about that." She shrugged off. "I'm out now, and it's great to see you too. I'm so glad you were on Mars."

"For all the good it did." Liara said contrite.

"Well we got the plans and took Cerberus's new AI. It wasn't a complete loss."

"That's true but Ashley almost died."

"Liara, you can't blame yourself for that." Truth be told Sarah blamed herself for that. "There was no way to know how the AI would react. That's why they're illegal." Not allowing Liara to wallow anymore she asked. "So this is your new command center?"

"Yes, I hope you don't mind."

"Not at all, I find it interesting. And it can only help." The magnitude of Liara being the Shadow Broker finally hit Sarah. They wouldn't have as much time together as they used to, Liara would be too busy. Trying to identify the advanced tech in the room she noticed an electronic sphere hovering about three feet off the ground. "What's that?"

"Oh, that's Glyph. He's an advanced VI I created to help me run through code and filter information."

"Commander Shepard." Came Glyphs soft spoken male voice. "I use complex algorithms to gather caches of information so that Dr. T'soni may view it easier. As well as troubleshoot any electronic or comm channel errors."

"It talks?"

Liara laughed a little. "He and yes. He can also tell just by looking at a blueprint everything you would need to make the item, like weapons or upgrades."

"Huh. That could come in handy. And speaking of plans, have you had any more luck in trying to figure out what that thing the Protheans were working on does?"

Liara changed into scientist mode and turned to her screens to bring up the blueprint they'd found on Mars. "We were able to pull the information from EVA. Unfortunately nothing yet. It's in an unrecognizable language. What I can tell right now is that it was built on a massive scale. But no 'push to destroy' button," Shepard smiled, had Liara just cracked a joke? Oblivious Liara continued. "Or how it actually works." She said incensed.

Noticing Shepard's smile Liara rolled her eyes. "Don't look at me like that. I've learned a few things as a Shadow Broker that have nothing to do with information."

Shepard wasn't going to argue with that and put her hands up. It was good to see she learned how to loosen up a bit.

"Well keep at it. I'm sure you'll figure it out."

Fidgeting Liara said. "I have a question for you. If I may?"

"Of course." She was an open book for Liara.

"Have you talked to Lt Vega yet about the blemish on his records?"

She hadn't, but she hadn't forgotten either. There just never seemed to be a good time to bring it up. There had been no time in Vancouver nor on the Citadel after Mars. Which was supposed to have been a simple extraction. Get some Prothean something or other the Alliance had found that could possibly help destroy the Reapers and leave. Simple. Except for Cerberus, the Illusive man and of all things, a walking talking AI named EVA. As was his way the Illusive Man hadn't shown up in person, he had a holographic comm signal set up to try and convince Shepard to work with him. The nerve! She'd barely contained her anger and the whole time thought of beating his ignorant ass to a pulp. Immature she knew but she couldn't help it.

It turned out he was also trying to distract her while EVA was stealing the information. Thankfully Ashley had been sweeping the room and noticed it before EVA could get away without being seen. In order to prevent her from leaving with the Prothean weapon, Vega crashed their shuttle into the Cerberus shuttle. It worked, as retaliation EVA almost killed Ashley, but they were able to get the information, now all they had to do was decipher it.

Vega's idea had worked. He thought quick on his feet in a high stress situation and even though it had wasted tons of credits in machinery it worked. The problem was that it had been extremely dangerous. Too dangerous. Any one of them could have been killed or seriously injured when both shuttles came crashing down.

"That's actually where I was headed next. Do you think it had anything to do with crashing the shuttle?"

"I can't be sure now. I hope I haven't misinterpreted the situation."

"I'm sure you didn't. What happened on his last assignment?"

"I'm sorry Shepard but I think it'd be best if he told you. I know that is not what you want to hear."

"You think he's just going to up and start talking about his past with me?"

Liara smiled. "Shepard, no one who ever came on board the Normandy could ever keep anything from you for long."

Sarah smiled at that. To make sure her crew was working at 100% she talked to them, frequently, especially when she became friends with them. It was part of her job but she really did care about helping get their issues resolved. Talking to James about his past would just be… personal. She immediately rejected the thought though. It was ridiculous to think that. She'd talked to her crew about more personal issues before. People she'd known much longer than Vega.

"I guess so." She admitted. Uncomfortable she continued. "Well, no sense in putting it off then. Let me know if you figure anything out with this weapon." She turned to leave but stopped at the door. "Glad to have you back Liara." She said and smiled at the Asari.

"Glad to be back Shepard." She said smiling back.

Shepard took the elevator down to the shuttle bay. During the ride she could admit to herself that she was curious to know what had shaken the unshakeable Vega. James was kind and thoughtful, deadly serious about his work, and easy on the eyes. He was the biggest flirt and he managed to balance all of it without effort or be something he wasn't; a talent she envied.

She enjoyed his teasing, it helped relax her. She never took it seriously either, he flirted with everyone. If he was serious about his flirting she wouldn't know what to do. Men only wanted her for the power of her rank, they were afraid of her rank or they didn't like her like that and put her in the friend zone. She had to chuckle at that last part. Normally it was the woman putting the man in the friend zone. She'd grown accustomed to the way it worked though. She came to like it, having no romantic entanglements helped keep her focused on work.

She could be content to be his friend it wouldn't be the first time. Again that inner voice protested and she silenced it. The elevator started to slow as it approached the shuttle bay. She couldn't believe it was only the second day on the Normandy. She was already having to the part of her job she hated, reprimand a soldier; Vega. What he'd done on mars had worked, they accomplished their objective but a soldier who took too much risk always had t be brought back in line. The risk was never worth the loss of life.

The elevator doors silently whooshed open. She smiled at Cortez who winked at her as she walked past and was smiling like he knew something she didn't. Odd, she thought, he hadn't winked at her yet, maybe he was a winker? When she looked to where Vegas station was she realized what that wink was for. Vega was doing pull ups and making it look effortless. She was amazed with herself that she didn't stumble over her own feet, she somehow kept walking.

Her nipples tightened as his shirt stretched against each rock hard muscle as they rippled and strained to lift his weight. He just kept doing them, one right after another. She reminded herself to keep breathing and walked up next to him waiting for him to stop but he didn't. Honestly for a moment she kind of forgot why she came down as she tried her best not to gawk at him.

"You down here for something, or are you just looking?" He grunted as he pulled himself up again.

"I did come to talk but now I might stay for the show." Did she really just say that out loud? She had to stay focused on what she was there to do.

"You're going to have to try harder than that to make me blush gatito." He said softly.

When she didn't respond he took the hint. He stopped doing his pull ups and cracked his neck. "Think you can dance and talk at the same time?" He challenged.

"Um, sure." Not the usual way she talked to her crew but everyone had their own way of doing things and she'd spared with Vega more than once in Vancouver. She followed him out a ways towards the middle of the bay. She did a few stretches and they both started to hop on the balls of their feet. She did the dance for a little bit in silence, giving them both a moment before she began.

They took jabs at each other, connecting occasionally but mostly blocking or ducking in time, finally she blurted out. "What happened on your previous assignment?"

Ducking her left hook he said. "You didn't read about it in my records?"

"No, I didn't exactly have access to personnel records when we first met and I haven't had a chance to request them yet."

"Right, I forgot about that. Well, it didn't go exactly to plan." He frowned. "In fact it was a big cluster fuck. There wasn't any good communication and all but one of my squad mates, including our CO died." She blocked his jab and returned one that he ducked.

He said it so casually, did it not bother him? "I'm sorry, how did it happen?"

"You really want to know?"

"I do." She connected with a right as he hesitated.

"We were sent to save a civilian colony under attack by Collectors. My CO got killed by one, which left me in charge. We were running out of ammo and time, I was forced to choose; save the colony," He swung and she blocked. "Or save the intel we found on the Collecters. Intel we could have used to destroy them." He ducked her jab. "I chose the intel."

"That must have been so hard."

"We still tried to get anyone out we could but it wasn't enough." They circled around. "The best part was when it turned out we didn't need the intel at all." He said with venom. "You were already out saving the galaxy by taking out the entire Collector home world."

He was a million miles away, if Shepard had to guess he was right back in that combat zone living it again. All but one of his squad and a whole bunch of civilians died for what he felt was nothing. She didn't really know what to say. Nothing ever seemed to faze him but this really ran deep, a heavy burden for anyone but how could he blame himself? She struggled for words. "You can't blame yourself, you didn't know..."

He cut her off. "Who says I'm blaming myself? You're a shrink too?" He was angry, he'd never spoken to her this way before. She was going to have to stop this before he accidently hurt her. She was good, but his size gave him the edge. Time to get to business.

"Don't bullshit me, you blame yourself." She said slowly matching his anger.

"And if I do?" She blocked a kick that hurt her forearm.

"You're letting it affect your work, that stunt you pulled on Mars was reckless.

"So." He said not getting or not wanting to get her point.

"So." She said as she connected with a right. "Maybe you don't care if you live or die..." Seeing her opening, she ducked as his arm went past her head. She slipped under that same arm, grabbed it and flipped him over her shoulder with his own momentum, sprawling him on his back. "But." She said breathing heavy from the exertion to flip him. "If you're _half_ as good as I think you are then we need you alive." And she glared at him.

Vega knew when Shepard was near, he always caught her floral scent before he saw her. His pride preened a little when he saw that she was openly staring at him. He'd been hoping that she'd come and talk to him so he could put her at ease in his company again. She was way out of his league but as long as they remained friends he could be content with that. The questions about his record quickly showed him this was not what he was hoping for. Sparing had seemed like a good idea at the time. They'd done it before and this way he wouldn't show her how much shame he felt about what happened that horrible day.

The hard landing snapped him out of his anger and impressed the hell out of him, she'd never done that before. He wasn't ready to put it behind him, their blood was on his hands. But it was time to learn to live with it. Or at least not be so outwardly careless anymore, he most certainly didn't want to get anyone else killed. The rumors about Shepard were true. She really could talk anyone down from the ledge he thought. He laid there for just a moment longer bringing himself back. A small part of him had hoped Shepard was worried about him because she cared and not because she needed every able body, but it seemed she was all business, he couldn't hold it against her.

He gave a nod to show he understood and got up and started to walk back to his workbench letting his mind clear. When Shepard didn't follow he stopped. He didn't know what she was thinking about, but her shoulders were tight. He wanted to try and hold on to their friendship outside of rank and he hated seeing her tense. He understood she was just doing her job, hopefully if he showed her it didn't change things for him it wouldn't change things for her. "Thanks for the dance, _Lola_." He said and continued to the bench. He hoped her curiosity at this new nickname and the teasing way he said it would ease the tension.

Shepard didn't really know what to do now. Not everyone took to being reprimanded well. Especially when she was friends with them. Sometimes they thought being friends meant she would look the other way at their transgressions. When she didn't they almost always stopped being friends with her and it really hurt. She was there again, this time with James. On the Citadel it felt like they'd gotten back to common ground. As much as she didn't want to change that, she could never nor would ever allow her feelings to sway her judgment when it came to the safety of her crew. It would be selfish and unfair. She realized now this was the first time she almost did. So she stood there for a moment collecting herself after that little bit of insight.

"Thanks for the dance, Lola." He cut through her thoughts. He'd said it like the James she knew from Vancouver. It felt like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders and her body relaxed. He wouldn't allow rank to come between them, he knew it was nothing personal for her. He would respect her rank as she would respect his. She was much happier so she took her queue from him and slowly walked up next to him again. "Lola?" She asked crossing her arms.

"Yeah." He said taking his shotgun apart to clean it. "You kinda look like a Lola."

"What about Gatito?"

"Well since I was sworn under penalty of death that I couldn't use that name in the presence of anyone." He gave her a look that she couldn't quite read. "I had to come up with another one." He said trying to be serious.

"Alright, why do I look like a Lola?"

He paused just a moment in his task. "I had a friend who's sister's name was Lola, she was sexy and tough, you remind me of her." He slightly turned his head and gave her a wicked look that promised things she wasn't sure he was ready to give to her. She felt a tingle through her body anyhow, and did it start getting warmer in the shuttle bay?

Uncrossing her arms he went back to cleaning the shotgun. If he could flirt and get away with it, so could she. "Since you're cute, I'll let you get away with it. For now."

As she walked away towards the elevator she heard him say. "Now you've gone and done it, you've made me blush."

She smiled to herself at the unexpected satisfaction that gave her even if he was joking. Lola huh? Secretly she liked it, not that she would tell James that, he was just being James. The elevator opened and she turned around and hit the button to go up to the CIC. Looking back to where she'd left him, she caught him unashamedly staring at her ass while she walked away. Cortez was very intently looking at something on the Kodiak. Keeping her distance was going to be a lot more challenging than she thought. She rolled her eyes at him; he winked and went back to cleaning his gun. She shook her head and tried to hide her inner turmoil at seeing the expression on his face.


	6. Chapter 6

The shuttle door on the Kodiak opened to the moon of Palaven. It was a dark barren place with rocky crags giving the moon a bluish glow. Boulders and rocks of varying sizes littered the ground, with no vegetation to speak of. The atmosphere allowed Shepard to leave her helmet in the Kodiak, something she appreciated; wearing it tended to cut off her peripheral view. Husks were all over the landing pad and they couldn't land. Shepard clung to the door across from Vega, scanning the landing zone. Since there was nothing to latch them into the Kodiak Liara was behind them using small amounts of biotics since she only was able to use one hand; the other she was using to hold on to the ceiling strap.

Two circling sweeps and she, Liara, and Vega were able to clear the landing pad. As they descended to land she said, "Ok people. I want to make this quick. I'm not a fan of being a politicians' errand girl." A true statement for her but unfortunately she was going to have to be one a while longer.

"There have to be more husks out there, keep your eyes open." She then turned to Cortez in the pilot's seat. "Cortez, coordinates."

"Straight ahead 40 meters, I've transferred the coordinates to your Omni-tool. Be careful." He said back.

"Got it," she confirmed, looking at her Omni-tool. Making sure a fresh clip was loaded; Sarah felt the familiar jostling of the upward thrust from the Kodiak being so close to the hard ground. She shouted "Let's go!" to the team, leaping out first to lead the way.

On the ground they fanned out, scanning the terrain for the glowing eyes of husks. A few husks tried to attack, but with Liaras' biotics and Shepard and Vega's assault rifles they never got close. They seemed to come in groups of six to ten Shepard observed. Three came first from behind a rocky crag, Liara sent out a warp field to hold them and Shepard and Vega picked them off quickly. A few moments later two husks came up the side of the rock formation and dropped down ten yards to Vega's right.

Shepard knelt on one knee but instead of firing she watched Vega, who was in front of her, walk towards them firing and dropping them easily.

"These guys are too easy Commander." He looked back at her, enjoyment written on his face.

She agreed with him, it was almost too easy, and like him she enjoyed combat too, but the look in his eyes went right through her. Ignoring the ridiculous tingle that enveloped her body she said instead. "Just keep your mind focused Lt., we can't afford to get sloppy." She cringed as she said it because the enjoyment left his face and she was left with a mask of indifference.

She led them to the small gate on the outpost. Shepard started in surprise when Liara yelled 'Watch out!' and slammed a husk to the ground then finished it off with her pistol.

Liara gave her a concerned look, Shepard just smiled as a thank you and walked into the post when the Turian guarding the gate opened it for them to pass.

"Everyone check your gear." She said as she looked around. The post was makeshift, built around the terrain, with one side of the post bearing an impressive looking mounted cannon gun, and across from that a line of bunkers. Crates were scattered everywhere, Shepard immediately hoped there would be supplies that her team might be able to use.

When she realized her squad hadn't responded to her she looked back at them and saw that they were transfixed on something. She followed their line of sight and her stomach clenched; Palaven was burning. How could she have missed it, she thought. The great planet dominated the eastern horizon, enormous craters of fire streaked across the surface, plainly showing the reaper's disastrous path. She couldn't fathom how the Turians managed to focus on fighting while watching their planet be destroyed.

"Is that what Earth looked like?" Liara asked quietly.

Shepard couldn't immediately answer. Looking at Palaven made fresh the pain of having to leave Earth in such a state. "Yes."

"I'm so sorry."

After a moment Vega said firmly. "Let's go. The sooner we finish this mission the sooner we can do something about it." He looked back at Liara and then Shepard. "For everyone."

Shepard nodded her agreement. She turned to her left and called out to the nearest Turian who was guarding the gate. "We're the ground team from the Normandy, where's your commanding officer?"

Without taking his eyes away from scanning the area they'd just come from the Turian said. "General Corinthus, fourth bunker on your right."

"Thanks." Shepard said and they continued south. The bunkers were more like cargo pods with one wall cut off and open and they elevated off the ground about a meter. They passed a bunker with gold colored tarps on a platform, Shepard realized these were dead Turians.

"I wonder how many they've lost." Vega said soberly.

Liara responded. "Not near as many as Earth, though it appears they might be catching up."

Shepard didn't say anything, she didn't really know what to say so she continued on and no one said anything more until they reached the General.

"General Corinthus…"Shepard started but the General interrupted her.

"Commander Shepard, I didn't really believe it would be you. It's an honor to meet you." He said looking at her and saluting.

Always flustered at the undue praise she saluted back and said. "You too, I wish it could have been under better circumstances."

"Agreed." The General said, and then asked. "What can I do for you?"

"I'm here for Primarch Fedorian, we need him to help with uniting all races against the Reapers." She specifically withheld that it would be to approve Turian troops to help save Krogan lives, you never knew who was ok with it and who would bat crap crazy about the idea. She was glad neither Liara nor Vega gave any hint that she wasn't being completely forthcoming.

His mandibles flared and he said. "He's dead. His shuttle was shot down as he was trying to leave for Palaven." His shoulders dropped and he looked at the map on the table in front of him not really seeing it.

"I'm sorry General, I heard he was a good man." She had heard that, she just wasn't sure if it was true. Pointing that out though wasn't something she felt was really important at the moment.

"Thank you commander, he was a friend, and he was an outstanding diplomat."

Shepard allowed a silence to follow in acknowledgement of another comrade falling. She didn't wait long though. For Shepard, time was a noose and she was standing on a trapdoor, never knowing when it would drop and time would be up. "Who would be next in charge, isn't there a hierarchy?" She asked him.

Liara chimed in. "There should be, lines of successions are very clear in the Turian culture." They all looked at the General expectantly.

He sighed. "Yes, but with so many dead and so much chaos I don't know who that is right now. If I could contact Palaven I could find out but right now it's not possible." He sounded frustrated.

"Why not?" Shepard asked hiding her disappointment.

"The comm channel is currently down and I don' have enough men to protect this outpost let alone spare a few to fix the tower."

Forcing herself not to sigh she smiled instead. "Not a problem, we'll take care of it. Where is it?"

"You keep going south through the post, it'll be on a platform fifteen meters from the gate."

"I can see the comm tower commander." Vega told her. "It's to the left of that main barricade outside the gate."

She nodded to Vega and Liara, they walked off the platform and waited for her. Shepard turned back to the General and said, "We'll be back." She motioned for them to follow her in the direction the General pointed them in.

She was wary as they spread out and walked towards the comm tower. They hadn't run into any real life threatening situations yet and while that was nice, it put Shepard on edge. She kept her gun pointed in the directions she looked as a precaution. The husks didn't make another appearance until they reached the tower.

"Shepard! On your left!" Liara yelled.

She turned in time to see it almost on her. She fired three shots then switched to her switch blade and cut a jagged hole in its torso up to its neck. Another one followed him but Vega finished him off before he could get close and two more from behind them that Liara handled and the area was clear again.

Liara walked to the controls and after fiddling with them she said. "Shepard, we can't connect the signal from here we have to manually engage it from the top, this panel has been destroyed."

"Ok go, Vega and I will cover you."

"I'll fix it as quickly as possible." Liara climbed the ladder to the top.

Shepard had no worries about that, Liara would fix it, probably better than it was before it was put offline. "Vega I want you over there behind that rock to our right on the small rise, I'll stay here." The rock being on a small rise in the ground would provide him some cover, a 360 degree vantage point of the area surrounding them, and an eye on the gate to the post in the distance.

"Hell yeah."

She felt his enjoyment coming out again and this time didn't say anything about it. His attitude was infectious and if it helped him be more focused it worked for her. It took only a moment for Vega to spot husks coming in front of them at a distance. She turned with him to take aim. The husks kept coming but she and Vega worked in unison to make sure they weren't overwhelmed. There was almost a pattern to their attack, they would run up, her squad would kill them, they'd have a moment to collect themselves and they'd attack again. It was odd.

Just like now, they'd killed about five husks and now they were in a moment where they could check their ammo and get ready for the next wave.

"Why is it only husks?" Vega said over the comm. It was an impressive observation and a good question, one which Shepard intended to find an answer to.

"Not sure, I noticed that too." She looked at him out of the corner of her eye, she liked how he meshed with the team. He took commands without question and had started in some respects, anticipating her moves. He looked good in his gear too. A sing song 'Done' from Liara interrupted Shepard's thoughts.

"Good job." Shepard said to Liara as she came back down. Liara took Shepard's place while she engaged her communicator. "General Corinthus do you copy?"

There was a crackling then the Generals deep voice. "Loud and clear Shepard. Is the tower functional?"

"Yes. Let me know as soon as you know anything, my team will stay out here and help your men along the wall."

"You have my thanks Commander, I'll let you know as soon as I do. Corinthus out."

Shepard turned the communicator back to squad frequency. She didn't want to go back mostly because doing nothing while she was waiting for something was a torment to her. But mostly combat helped focus her, it wouldn't allow her to think about Earth or Palaven or the impossible task set before her. Plus, if she could help the guards posted along the wall of this outpost the better. She had no doubt they were tired, the more men they lost the slower and longer the shift changes got; she knew from personal experience.

They walked closer to the gate and two cannibals made an appearance. She felt the pressure of the bullets as her kinetic shield stopped them. In one fluid motion, they all got low, found cover and started firing back. A husk was running up on Liara's left so Shepard took aim and gunned it down just as Vega and Liara finished off the cannibals. Before they had time to catch their breath Corinthus crackled in her ear.

"Commander."

"Shepard here." She said as she watched a loan husk that had run towards the gate get levitated in a blue bubble and simultaneously got dropped with a few shots from Vega's assault rifle.

"I've had word you can return."

Just what she wanted to hear.

"On our way. Shepard out."

No more husks or cannibals were in their area so they walked with purpose back to the Generals bunker.

"Shepard, I have good news and I have bad news." The General said. All of a sudden he snapped into a salute. "Vakarian, sir I didn't see you there."

"No problem General, at ease." Came Garrus' deep baritone.

Shepard whipped her head around and couldn't believe her eyes, a wave of relief swept through her at seeing her old friend alive.

"I thought I heard you over the radio. It's good to see you again Shepard."

"Likewise." She'd hug him but now was not the time. "I thought you were on Palaven…" She trailed off, worst case scenario in her mind had been he was killed. He would have gone down in a blaze of glory, but still dead or at least somewhere he wouldn't be able to contact her and she'd never hear from him again.

"I was, but some people believed us Shepard, and they put me in charge of getting the Turians as ready as possible. Fortifying positions, having alternate supplies routes, I'm the expert advisor for the Reapers now." She couldn't tell if he was happy about that or not. Still, it had to be nice to have someone believe in you before the physical proof was in their backyard.

"That's great Garrus. I'm glad you're alive."

"Likewise. Now, I didn't mean to interrupt, General Corinthus you said you had good and bad news for the Commander?"

"Yes sir. The Commander is here to pick up the new Primarch. It's Adrien Victus. The good news is that the last contact with him was here on Manae, the bad news is we can't raise any of the outlaying posts and we don't know where he is."

Before that statement could irritate her Garrus said. "I might be able to help with that. I was fighting with him this morning and we split up not too long ago. I could take the Commander in the direction I last saw him."

"Great." Shepard said before Corinthus could say anything. "Let's go. Thank you General."

They walked down the ramp from the platform, if Garrus was coming with her, she would have to send Liara or Vega back. It took a moment to make her decision, she wouldn't need any biotics with Garrus's sniper rifle and there was probably little need for hacking skills, Shepard would be able to get them by in a pinch.

"Liara, I need you to go back to ship and get to the bottom of that reaper weapon. I want to know absolutely everything about it."

"Got it." Liara took off towards the landing pad.

"You remember how this goes right Garrus?" She asked smiling as they pulled out their guns to get them ready for the long trek.

"Believe me Shepard, I couldn't forget if I tried." He said following right into step as they left the compound, weapons at the ready.

As Shepard and Vega followed Garrus she asked. "Garrus, have you seen any other types of reaper husks? So far we've run into those cannibals and human husks but that's it." There had to be other species that the reapers had taken, it was their MO. Destroy or repurpose everything.

"Yes." Garrus replied. "They've taken Turians. I'm thinking they probably have a few other species too."

Vega said from behind her. "Since discovering the Collectors were Prothean reaper husks, we might even run in to some ancient ones we've never seen before."

"The runt is right, we'll have to be careful Commander, they might all have different capabilities too."

"Thanks Scars." Vega said.

She rolled her eyes, she hoped this was them becoming friends and not having a pissing contest. She had to make sure they stayed focused though, if she had her way there'd be plenty of time for that on the Normandy. "Guys, could we stay on track? Galaxy to save?"

Garrus was the first respond. "I was just trying to give him a compliment Commander." He said sarcastically.

With a wicked grin Vega said. "And I was just trying to accept it."

She had to bite the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing as they continued forward.

Vega liked this Garrus already. Anyone who could be sarcastic and tease Shepard was alright with him. As they continued their march over the rough ground, James kept himself alert, checking behind them every now and then. When the terrain began to get rougher, they had to jump up small edges and over rocks and the path they were taking started to narrow like a hallway. There were rock like walls on both sides of them that came up to Vega's head, and he could have touched both sides of the wall by stretching out his arms. Garrus turned a corner when he suddenly shouted.

"Down!"

Both he and Shepard immediately crouched, Shepard was out of view of what was ahead due to a small curve in the path, but Vega had rolled forward behind an outcrop on the right rocky wall. Some rocks were on the path and some were big enough to hide behind, like the one Garrus was behind a little farther in front of them.

"It's a Turian husk, a Marauder." Garrus shouted. "They're tough sons of bitches."

Vega peaked around the rock and saw what looked like a Turian but was covered with strange alien machinery and the telltale glowing eyes. He was forced back behind the cover as a spray of bullets flung rock pieces at him.

"Any weaknesses?" Shepard asked. Glancing back at her she had a puzzled expression. He would have admired its cuteness if a movement above her hadn't caught his attention. A husk running on top of the cliff wall trying to get close to Shepard to drop down on top of her. Not on his watch he thought and gunned the husk down. Shepard gave him a grateful look as Garrus replied to her question from in between shooting and ducking.

"His shield is strong but once it's down he'll be easy." Garrus had switched from his sniper rifle to his assault rifle since he was too close to use it. My kingdom for a grenade James cursed to himself. He popped up and fired at one of the cannibals. "Anyone have any grenades?" Vega asked.

"No." Garrus said and shot a husk that tried to run up on his right.

"No." Shepard said. She still hadn't done anything, what was she thinking he wondered.

"What the hell kind of weapons do they use?" He asked. He noticed his kinetic barrier was down to 50%. On Mars even with the Cerberus troops they'd run into his shield hadn't dropped that much.

"Not sure, they appear to be the same that we use but they seem much more powerful, or at least energy draining." Garrus replied.

He flicked his eyes to Shepard again. She shot him a determined look and switched to her shotgun. His stomach dropped as she ran out in the open towards the Marauder. That's what she'd been thinking he realized, she'd been trying to figure out the fastest way out of the situation. He couldn't help but be impressed. He stood up exposing himself to help take some heat of her and provide suppressing fire on anything he could get in his sites, shield be damned. He saw Garrus do the same thing as she ran by him. Shepard kept her sights on the Marauder and fired four shots then rolled behind a rock sticking out of the ground.

Vega ducked behind the rock, switched to his shotgun and with two more blasts took down the Marauder. He did one quick sweep and saw Garrus finished off the last cannibal and one last husk. Vega holstered his weapon and went to Shepard to make sure she was alright.

She looked up at him with those innocent eyes of hers and said through her heavy breathing. "That bastard almost ripped through my shields."

He couldn't help but smile. What a woman he thought. He put out his hand and helped her to her feet. She pushed her bangs from her face. Her eyes were bright and her cheeks were red from the adrenaline of combat. "Thank you."

She looked away first towards Garrus and Vega was glad. He was such a fool around her, he'd forgotten to ask her if she ok, the reason he went over to her in the first place. Of course she was though, she was Commander Shepard, her breathing was back to normal already and her cheeks weren't red anymore.

Shepard asked Garrus. "Please tell me this Victus is worth it. Will he help us?"

"Honestly Shepard I'm not sure, I can't imagine why not."

"What's he like?"

"He's career military, gets results and he's popular with his troops. His ways might be unconventional but I think we need unconventional right now."

Vega agreed but waited to see what Shepard said.

She just looked at Garrus for a moment. She mastered the you-can't-read-my-thoughts-no-matter-how-long-you-stare look. It was something he was getting used too. By the end of her stay in Vancouver he was beginning to read her too well. Finally she said. "Alright. At some point I may ask you to elaborate but I trust you." She didn't move and this time he could read her expression, she was nervous. "Garrus, why don't you join us on the Normandy, it'd be like old times."

Garrus replied. "I was hoping you'd ask, being an 'expert advisor' is not as fun as it sounds and everyone wants to salute me." He said. The way Garrus cocked his head Vega knew he thought it was strange to have people saluting him. It made Vega wonder what Garrus did before becoming an expert advisor. His loyalty to Shepard though was sincere and confirmed many rumors Vega had heard of Shepard's crew. Their loyalty was legendary, she did anything for them and they did anything for her. Including following her on suicide missions, apparently any time she asked. He smiled to himself, he would too he realized as he looked around at where they were.

Vega followed as Garrus and Shepard started walking again.

"We should be there soon. This was where we split up, he said he was going to go to the post just a little farther ahead of us."

A moment later they all stopped as they heard the popping sound of gun shots in the distance.

"That's coming from the post, come on!" They ran to the post and stopped short of running into the fray. They needed to assess what they were up against. The post was swarmed; cannibals, husks, two marauders and some huge hulking thing. "What in the holy hell is that?" Vega asked.

It had a massive body that looked like it was covered with black, stiff armor plating, its arms were as thick as a human body and there long spikes sticking out of its spine. It had a long bony skinny neck and a human skeleton as a head. It was hideous and it walked on all fours and lumbered until it charged, then it was like a moving wall. They watched it charge a Turian and hit it with a sickening thud, the Turian didn't get back up.

"Garrus." Shepard said quietly. "I want you high, pick off anything with glowing eyes." She turned to Vega as Garrus took off to find a high point for his sniper rifle. "Vega watch my back, we have to stop that thing before it kills anyone else."

"What's your plan Commander?" He asked.

"We need to try and down that thing. He's slow until he charges so we'll have to trade off being bait. Garrus will pick off any that he can and will cover our backs when he can."

"Is he good at it?"

Shepard looked at him. "Yes, trust me."

He did and said. "Ok, if you trust him then so do I. Anything else?"

"Stay out of my way and don't let me die." She smiled at him eagerly.

"Right." He said. "Not a problem." A woman after his own heart apparently. He followed Shepard as she ran into the small clearing and created havoc. The husks and cannibals that were closest looked at her but that was their mistake. The Turians they had pinned came up from behind their cover and finished them off. Shepard took out a husk close to her and ducked behind a small rock pile. He could see she was slowly making her way across the field to the hulking reaper. He killed two husks, one got close and he knocked it down with the butt of his rifle and shot it in the head. He watched as the Turians struggling with the hulking reaper.

Vega saw that it was bending down to charge a Turian trying to crawl away from it when Shepard stepped out from behind the rock pile and went straight for the hulking monster firing rapidly from her rifle. It turned toward Shepard abandoning its prey and started bending towards Shepard. Vega knew it was his turn. He ran out from where he was and repeatedly fired at the thing until it turned toward him

They did that several times but it just wouldn't go down. They didn't give up, as it went to charge him Shepard shot at it again, and again the thing turned on her. This time it charged and she didn't roll out of the way in time. Its huge arm swung at her and hit her square in the back with a thump and she was flung to his right.

He ran up on it he emptied the last of his shotgun bullets into it to get its attention. Relief flooded him as it turned to him and away from Shepard. In that split second as Vega waited for it to charge him one side of the things head exploded and it dropped. His respect for Garrus' ability jumped as well as his appreciation for the Turians' timing.

"Garrus cover me, I'm going to check on Shepard."

"I've got you, go."

Vega ran to where Shepard was. She was on her stomach. His heart started to beat normally again as he saw her slowly pushing herself up, using her gun for support but stumbling a little.

"Shepard, are you alright? Do you have any medigel?" He asked concerned she may have broken something.

She groaned a little. "Yes." He gently grabbed her underneath both her arms and helped her stand. Garrus made it over to them indicating they were safe. "I'm fine really, I just got the wind knocked out of me." Her hand remained on his arm a little longer to help steady her.

"Good, we're clear and I see Victus." Garrus said.

Shepard slowly stood on her feet, took a deep breath and let go of his arm.

"I'm ready." She said. "Let's get this over with, I want a shower and a bed." She walked forward and Vega forced the imaged of her in a shower out of his mind as he and Garrus followed. It wasn't really fair to her, in his mind it was all happening in slow motion and there was no soap, just water slowly cascading down her luscious body, sliding through every nook and over every curve, like some erotic water nymph.

He wasn't paying attention to where he was going and stumbled over a small rock on the ground, he managed not to fall but Shepard looked back at him.

"Your first day walking?"

"Ha." He said, it was a good thing people couldn't read minds he thought. "No, I was distracted by that." He pointed at the reaper walking on the moon in the distance, they'd already noticed it but that was the first thing that was safe that came to mind.

He thought she looked like she didn't believe him. He thought she was going to say something but she turned forward and a moment later they reached the very small post where Victus was. There were only three bunkers here and very little crates. They reached Victus and Garrus introduced the Commander to the new Primarch. As was becoming apparent, everyone knew who Shepard was. Vega didn't listen to much of what was said after the introductions, not actively, he kept his eyes scanning the horizon and watched the remaining Turians dressing wounds.

The snippets he heard was Victus's sadness at hearing he was being forced to play politics and that another Turian was dead. Victus sounded just as frustrated as Vega was. How could no one in the alliance know about a Brute, he wondered. That's what the Turians were calling it. As he continued to half listen he almost scoffed out loud when he heard Shepard _ask_ for the Primarch's help. It was a perfect example of why he wouldn't be good at leadership. The entire galaxy needed to work together, this wasn't as small as one group hating another. She shouldn't have to ask.

"I'll help Shepard." Victus cut into his thoughts. "I'll go to this summit and I'll offer any support I can."

His frustration lessoned after hearing that. Shepard immediately got on the comm. and contacted the Normandy to send the Kodiak for them. He couldn't help but be amused at how quickly she got on the comm.

As they waited for pick-up he thought back to when he first met her. He couldn't believe this tiny woman saved the Alliance and the galaxy, twice. His estimation of her had been right, no one saw her coming. He had a feeling if she put her mind to it she could convince the batarians to love humans. He laughed to himself. One thing at a time he thought, the easy part first, save the galaxy, then worry about the batarians.


End file.
